Power Rangers Tribal Force
by Rocket Knight 777
Summary: A fully original Power Rangers series with a Native American motif. The Tribe of Dark Shadows is free once again, and are out for revenge against those that sealed them, the Raygos. Can the descendants of the Raygos Warriors defeat the Darkness?


_**Greetings true believers and fellow Power Rangers fans. Here's the Ranger series you voted for. Hopefully you will enjoy this about as much as I enjoyed writing it.**_

**I do not own the Power Ranger franchise, which belongs to Saban. I only own this idea of a season and the characters within. However, the Rangers of this story are based on people in real life, so the likenesses the characters resemble belong to them.**

_**Power Rangers Tribal Force**_

**A fanfic written by Rocket Knight 777**

Episode 1: Inner Spirit part 1

**(black screen)**

Many moons ago, long before the white man came...

**(A series of yellowed black and white photos begins to play on screen.)**

The various tribes of the Native Americans lived in peace and harmony with nature and each other. But one tribe was the most in tune with the spirits of nature, and that tribe was known as the Raygos Tribe. The Raygos Tribe believed that man and nature should co-exist to survive. And to do this, the tribe's shaman, or medicine man as they are sometimes known as, will bestow upon a youth, who the tribe recognizes as being mature, a stone totem that is carved to look like the animal spirit that will be connected to them. Through these totems, the spirit and the tribe member would communicate with each other. The tribesmen to ask for guidance, and the spirits to guide the tribesmen. Even the women were given spirit totems so they could not only seek guidance and protection for themselves, but also for the ones they loved. By trusting in their spiritual guardians, the tribe was able to travel great distances on land, in the sky, and on the big waters, making them the first world travelers. And in their travels, they would return to their land with at least one new totem that was either carved of light-colored stone to represent the good they stood for, or carved of black stone to represent the evil within, where they would try and purify the evil spirits of their evil, or seal them away where they would do no harm to anyone.

**(The last image in the sequence shows a black totem carved to look like a Chinese dragon snarling evilly before the screen fades to black. Scene fades up to images of cowboys and settlers fighting with the Indians and images of the Trail of Tears.)**

Then the white man came with guns, diseases, and wars. They gave the tribes only a few options. They were to conform to traditions of the white man and forget their traditions of old, or keep their traditions and give up the land of their ancestors, or die trying to protect both. Though they tried to achieve peace between the white men and their brothers, the Raygos Tribe was forced to go with the other tribes in the Trail of Tears.

**(Images of various meetings of Native Americans are now shown.)**

Many of the young men in the Raygos Tribe believed that giving up their land made them weak, and that they should fight using the power of their spirits to strengthen them. But the tribe's elders knew that fighting would bring more fighting, and that would destroy all the tribes.

**(Images that appear follow the story)**

Back and forth, the bickering lasted for days until one man, known as Dancing Buck, decided to try and take matters into his own hands. Taking a hunting party of about 15 with him, he rushed a white man settlement not too far from where his tribe had set up camp, trusting that their spirits would strengthen and protect them. In the end, however, only he and one other escaped with their lives. Seeking shelter in a cave, the two cursed the spirits, calling them weak. Dancing Buck even took off his spirit's totem and flung it into the wilderness, wishing to have a stronger spirit. Then a voice presented itself to them. The voice belonged to an evil dragon spirit that was sealed into the very cave they were in. The dragon promised them great strength if they would release him from the seal.

Dancing Buck was drawn to the dragon's words, but the other one, called Sharp Claw of Eagle, could sense the evil within the dragon spirit, and ran out of the cave. But Dancing Buck removed the seal that bound the spirit to its place. He then took the totem and wore it as his own, allowing the dragon's evil influence to enter him. With the new power he held, Dancing Buck was no more, and in his place was what he is known as now, Necrolong, the Dark Dragon Lord.

Necrolong then went on a rampage, using his powers to corrupt other members of the tribes, and release other dark spirits from their prisons. With them, he formed a new tribe, the Tribe of Dark Spirits. With it he started a war against all the tribes to try and gather more spirits to make his power grow. The Raygos Tribe, with their knowledge of spirits, led the defense against the Tribe of Dark Spirits. Leading them was five of their best warriors, including Sharp Claw of Eagle. Together they managed to defeat the evil, but because Necrolong was once a friend, they sealed him and the evil that served him into what is now called Blood Tears Mountain.

The images on the projection screen started to replay themselves from the beginning as the lights in the classroom came back on. A tall, Native American man in his late 40's – early 50's walked to the front of the classroom. He was Samuel Eagleclaw.

"To this day," he continued to tell his class, "the seal has held and the evil now sleeps. Many of those who were converted over to the darkness returned to their senses, but the war brought a lot of shame to the tribe. So many members now hide in unknown areas or claim to be part of another tribe to hide their shame; however all of the tribesmen have been counting the days; knowing that, with the power Necrolong had, it would only be a matter of time until the seal broke and the evil ran loose again. Their only hope was lying in the descendants of the five who first cast the seal, the five mightiest warriors the tribe had to offer. Any questions?"

Dozens of hands shot into the air.

"Remember this is our first class," the teacher said. "So please tell me your name when you are selected." He surveyed the hands and students. "You, with the cowboy hat." He then said, selecting one of the older boys in the class. He was wearing blue jeans, a black and white checkered shirt, brown cowboy boots, and a black cowboy hat. "What's your name, son?"

"Seth Prairies, Mr. Eagleclaw," the cowboy told him. "My question is: couldn't the fight have been avoided? I mean, couldn't the two tribes just talk it out instead of fight?"

"Oh, they tried," Mr. Eagleclaw answered. "Since the Tribe of Dark Spirits was composed of their tribal brothers, they did not want to fight them, or worse; but when reasoning couldn't affect them, they knew that they had to defend themselves, so they did. Any other questions?"

Hands shot up again. This time he selected a girl in the front row. She wore a loose, yellow t-shirt, grey sweatpants, and tennis shoes. Her long, dark hair was pulled back into a ponytail.

"Kiki Carmine, sir," she said.

"What's your question, Kiki?" Mr. Eagleclaw asked.

"Well, I'm a little confused," said Kiki. "You said that the Raygos tribesmen traveled across the ocean, but with only their canoes that would take days, months even. How is that possible? In fact, how is it possible that they could fly?"

"That's kind of hard to describe," the teacher explained. "The best way I can put it now is that members of the Raygos Tribe had a way of utilizing their guardian spirit's energy to perform these and other tasks. Now I want to try and answer a few more questions before the bell, so I'll come up with something better for you later. Next question, please."

A few more hands lifted.

"Next to Miss Carmine."

He had selected, this time, a young girl with curly red hair held in a ponytail. She was wearing a denim shirt that went to her knees and a powder blue v-neck t-shirt along with a pair of sandals on her feet and small hoop earrings.

"My name is Melody Carmine," she said.

"Any relation?" Samuel asked, motioning between her and Kiki.

"Sisters," she told him. "You said that there could be a chance that Necrolong could escape. Is that true?"

"Some say it is," he said. "They say that with each passing day Necrolong's rage and thirst for vengeance grows; and with modern times as they are, the Earth's weakening. With the seal holding the Tribe of Dark Spirits back connected to the spirit of the Earth, they say that it's only a matter of time before the sides tip in favor of Necrolong."

He looked at the clock.

"Time for one last question."

Only one person raised his hand this time. He was a fit and tough looking guy wearing a violet muscle shirt and ripped jeans with dirty, white tennis shoes. A violet, rolled-up bandana was tied around his head under his upward styled blonde hair.

"Yes, sir."

"Yeah, da name's Riff Viper," the tough guy said. "Do ya really expect us to believe all of dis?"

A few of the students turned and stared Riff down.

"Where's this comin' from, Riff?" Seth asked him.

"Come on, cowboy," Riff huffed, "it's not like everyone isn't thinkin' it. I checked da back of the book and not once did I see mention of a Necrolong, Dancing Buck, Tribe of Dark Spirits, or Raygos Tribe. How do we know he ain't just tryin' to mess with us?"

"Believe me or don't," Samuel said, "but what I said happened did, indeed, happen. Sadly, much of history as we know it is only written by the winners. So much is either changed due to bias or left out entirely, but like many civilizations, the stories and traditions live on orally. Now, I'd love to go on with this discussion, but we're about out of time. On your way out, feel free to look at some of the artifacts from my personal collection. See you tomorrow."

By the time he had said that last part, the final bell had sounded, and students started to file out of the classroom, some even glancing over the visual aids Samuel had brought with him for his lecture. Soon all but Seth, Riff, Kiki, and Melody had left, other than the teacher of course. They were still packing up their things.

"Uh, excuse me, Riff," the teacher called out, catching the bandana wearing teenager's attention. "I just checked the class roster, and you're not listed on it."

"You better check again," Riff smirked, "cuz it is dere."

Mr. Eagleclaw started to look over the roster again when Seth walked up to his desk.

"Riff Viper is only a name he calls himself. His real name is . . ." the teenage boy started.

"Don't you say it, cowboy!" Riff interrupted; as he then threw on a leather jacket he had hanging off the back of his desk. "I gots a reputation to keep up."

Seth merely rolled his eyes and pointed to a name on the roster.

"That's it," he said.

"Oh," Samuel said after seeing the name, "I get it."

"Riff has a deal going with the school," Kiki said as she and Melody walked up and joined the conversation. "He let's the school register him under his real name, but the teachers call him by his cover name."

"Surprisingly, many of the teachers are willing to respect Riff's privacy," Melody added.

"Well, you can add me to the roster, Riff," Samuel told him.

"Oh, dat is very comforting," Riff said sarcastically as he joined the others. "Knowing you can keep a secret just warms my heart and puts me at ease."

The teacher just looked at him.

"Don't take it personally," Kiki said to Samuel. "That's just how he usually is."

Samuel nodded, but then he noticed out of the corner of his eye a faint glowing coming from his desk, and apparently the teens didn't notice it.

"Well, come on guys," Melody said. "We gotta get to the bowling alley."

"Yeah, somebody had us volunteer for clean-up duty after the tournament this afternoon," Seth said as he shot Riff a fairly dirty look, along with Melody and Kiki.

"Would ya have rather had dose punks take advantage of Mel?" Riff asked.

"I could've knocked them out myself, thank you very much," the red head sharply stated.

"No, Mel," Kiki told her sister. "There was a better way to handle it."

"Yeah," the teenage cowboy agreed, as the four of them left the room. "You don't have to settle everything with a closed fist."

"You obviously don't know Dirk and Mad Man," Riff told them when they were in the hallway.

Once he was sure the area was clear, Samuel looked down at the source of the glowing. Staring down at four stone totem necklaces lying in front of his desk, he watched as the glow faded away from the objects.

"Could they be the ones?" he quietly asked himself.

At that point, he heard a knock on his classroom door. Looking up, he saw a woman who looked to be in her inner-sixties standing in the doorway.

"Afternoon, Ms. Dempsey," he said.

"Oh, please," Ms. Dempsey said as she entered his classroom, offering her hand which he took in a handshake. "Call me Dawn."

"Well, if we're going to be informal," Samuel said, "you can call me Samuel."

"Alright. Well, how are you enjoying your first day here at Raygo Springs High?" Dawn asked.

"Oh, it's been interesting, to say the least," he told her.

"They're not causing you trouble already, are they?"

"Oh, no, no, no. Nothing like that. It's just that I think I have a few students in this last class I think I can reach. As one of my professors once said, 'if you can reach at least a few of your students, your mission is complete.'"

"A good policy to have." She then noticed Samuel's heirlooms. "So, these are the artifacts of your ancestors?"

"Yes, some of these are mere replicas, but others have been in my family since the late 1800's."

"Handcrafted, no doubt." Dawn commented.

"Indeed." As soon as Samuel said that, the whole school started to shake.

"Earthquake!" Dawn shouted as screams filled the school halls, Samuel grabbed her and supported the both of them against his desk.

The school wasn't the only thing shaking. Outside the whole city of Raygo Springs was suffering from the earthquake. A muscular man with a blonde crew cut, wearing an olive green tank top, camo pants and combat boots, who was out on his afternoon run was stopped near a grocery store as he felt the quake.

"Can it be?" the man asked himself, speaking in a voice similar to that of a stereotypical military drill sergeant.

At a pool in a nearby park, a girl in her early 20's had just gotten out of the water when the quake caused her to fall back in.

"It can't be," her silently muttered.

In a different section of that same park, an elderly man was feeding a flock of pigeons when the quake scared the birds away. The man just sat there, unfazed.

"It is time," he softly stated, with a wicked gleam in his eye.

Deep within a small mountain outside the city, the sound of explosions rang out. Within one of the many caves that the mountain harbored, shadows shifted and rocks morphed until the cave looked like a cross between a throne room and a Native American meeting room. In the center of one of the walls was a large, maybe even life size statue of some dragonoid being sitting on a large throne. The cave was then covered in Native American petroglyphs drawn in dark flames. In the very center of the room was a pit filled with a large dark flame. From it sprang an energy form that became a human being with sharp features wearing a robe that looked to be made of the skins of a lion.

"Finally, we are free."

Back at the school, the quake ended, and Samuel and Dawn separated.

"Are you ok?" he asked her.

"I believe so," Dawn told him. "This may sound crazy, but that didn't feel like a normal earthquake."

'_Believe me,'_ he thought as he stared out the window, _'it wasn't, and things are just going to get worse.'_

**(commercial break)**

In a dark room, illuminated only by a large campfire, Samuel sat, cross-legged on the ground. Staring into the fire as another entered the room.

"The time has come." Samuel told the figure. "That earthquake today was a sign; a sign that the seal has weakened enough to allow some of the weaker members of the Tribe of Dark Spirits to escape. The war is about to start again."

Samuel stood up and looked at the figure in the shadows.

"The legacy that has been past down generation to generation has now come to you. Are you sure you are up to battling alone until the others are found?"

The figure stepped out of the shadows and into the light of the fire to show that he was a red Power Ranger, but he wore a Ranger uniform that was different from the Rangers before him.

"I am," the Red Ranger simply stated.

**(Insert scene change graphic)**

Meanwhile, in the cave, the robed figure sat before his own fire, facing the dragon statue. Hearing footsteps he glanced at the entrance to the cave and saw the man in camo pants, the girl from the pool and the elderly man step into his sanctum.

"Greetings to you," the robed one said to them. "Based on the fact that you are here, you were able to enter despite the seal placed on the mouth of this cave. This means you are either members of the Raygos Tribe, and therefore my enemy; or you are members of the Tribe of Dark Spirits who somehow avoided being sealed away and are now immune to its magic. Tell me, which is it?"

"Great chief," said the old man. "We are the only three surviving members of the Tribe of Dark Spirits."

"We were no where near the area where the five warriors cast the Shaman's spell," the man in camo explained. "Therefore we were cursed to see the white man rise to power and take complete control of the land."

"But now that the seal has weakened," the girl exclaimed, "we can begin our mission to reclaim our land."

"Tell me your names, tribesmen," the robed one told them.

Almost as if on cue, the man in camo was suddenly engulfed in fire as the old man was surrounded by a small tornado and the girl was caught in a large geyser. When the respective coverings dispelled, the three were left standing in new clothing that was a cross between modern clothes and more traditional Native American garments.

The man that was once in camo was now barefoot and wearing pants and an open vest that showed off his muscular body. They looked to be made from the skins of a monkey.

"My name is Primichimp," he said, "and my guardian spirit is that of the chimpanzee."

The girl now wore a knee-length sea green dress that had a design modeled after an octopus.

"My name is Octarina," she said, "and my guardian spirit is the octopus."

The old man now wore a long Shaman's robe and a headdress. Both were covered in black feathers.

"I am Darkro," he said, "and my guardian spirit is the crow."

The man who was in the cave first threw off his robe to reveal garments that were more traditional then his visitors. He wore moccasins, pants, and a shirt that all looked to be made out of lion's skin.

"And I am Leonidus," he told them, "and my guardian spirit is the lion. Together the four of us will bring the Tribe of Dark Spirits back to glory."

"And that shall be done," Darkro said, "with the help of the Shadow Hunters."

Darkro snapped his fingers, and once again the shadows shifted and rose to take the form of tall, thin, faceless male figures with shoulder-length black hair, and deep purple skin wearing black pants, vest, moccasins, and a headband. Half of them held tomahawks and the other half held bows and arrows.

"Yes," Leonidus agreed, "and they will need someone strong to lead them."

He motioned to one of the shadow hunters in the front row and it stepped forward. Leonidus reached into the sleeve of his shirt and pulled out a string necklace with a totem carved out of black stone to look like a cougar. He placed the totem around the shadow hunter's neck and stepped back as a cocoon of shadows enveloped the being. After a few seconds, the shadows faded to show the shadow hunter's form had changed. Its skin was now chalk white, and it seemed to stand a little taller and straighter than the horde behind him. The most startling feature was that it now had a face that looks like a mask with only glowing red eyes that stared out at Leonidus, awaiting orders.

"Go into the town, my Shadow Warrior, and prepare them for the return of the Tribe," Leonidus ordered the shadow hunter.

"It shall be done, my chief," the being said with a bow. He then walked out with several shadow hunters in tow.

"Forgive my questioning, Great Chief," Octarina said, catching Leonidus's attention, "but why give that spirit to the hunter?"

"Koogotho is one of my most loyal warriors from the great days of the tribe," he explained. "He will not let me down."

**(Insert scene change graphic)**

Night Crow Lanes is situated in the sports row area of Raygo Springs. It's a popular place in the area, especially with the high school students when they added the juice bar and workout room. It had a long standing tradition of being the celebration hub for the teams of the local high schools, and the near by college. Currently, the whole operation was run by Cyrus Moore, who bought it from the precious owner, Mingo Nightcrow, after Cyrus married his daughter, Rebecca. A couple times a year, Nightcrow Lanes would have a tournament opened to all ages, high school and higher. Four to five-person teams competed against each other in single elimination games, (two preliminary rounds with 1 game each, the quarter and semifinals with two games each, and the three game final round). It was after the second round that Mel, Kiki, Seth, and Riff were on clean-up duty.

"For crying out loud," Kiki said as she saw the mess of used napkins, unfinished meals, and spilt drinks. "Did they have pigs playing at this lane?"

"Oh, I'm sure dey woulda cleaned up a lil bit if dey had known dat deir moda's Mini Me was gonna be here," Riff told her sarcastically.

"Stuff it, Riff!" Seth snapped. "It's your fault we're doing this."

"Need I point out yet again dat I was standin' up for Lil' Red's honor?" Riff asked, miffed that Seth wasn't seeing things his way.

"And need I point out yet again that I could have easily taken those over-grown chimps myself," Mel snapped, glaring right at Riff. "And don't call me Lil' Red."

"You really tink you can take out da cap of da wrestling and football team and his running back lackey?" Riffed asked the younger Carmine. "Dey'd chew you up and spit you out before you can flinch."

"Please," Mel scoffed, "they're just a pair of overstuffed piñatas. I can take them easy."

"Oh, really?" said a male voice. Looking in its direction, Riff and Melody saw a sumo-sized teenage boy with a small, blonde ponytail wearing jeans and a letterman jacket over a white t-shirt, and a thin fit boy of the same age with a deep tan and long dark hair wearing similar attire. They were Radcliff "Dirk" Dunohue and Mendo "Mad Dog" Dominguez, respectfully. "You think you can take us, kid," Dirk asked.

"Easily," Mel growled, giving the two jocks a dirty stare.

"What say you put your money where your mouth is, chica?" Mad Dog asked confidently.

"Gladly," she snapped.

With that, she, the jocks, and Riff started towards each other until Seth and Kiki stepped between them.

"Don't even think about it," Seth told them. "This is exactly why we're here in the first place. So knock it off."

"Speaking of being here," Kiki said, looking right at Dirk and Mad Dog, "shouldn't you two be working?" 

The two jocks just laughed.

"You're kiddin', right?" Mad Dog scoffed.

"We've led the school to multiple championships," Dirk told them. "We don't need or have to do this janitorial work."

"Well, you better get used to it," Mel snapped, "because all you two will end up being is janitors."

"Why you little pipsqueak!" Dirk roared as he and Mad Dog tried to attack them until a strong voice interrupted them.

"Break it up, all of ya," said a heavy-set, middle-aged, balding man in a Hawaiian shirt and shorts. "I thought having you guys on clean-up would let you learn about teamwork and getting along, but clearly that's not going to happen."

"Sorry, Cyrus," Kiki sighed.

"It's not your fault, Kiki," Cyrus told her. "Guess I just need to split you up into groups. Dick and Mad Dog, you two are on bathroom duty."

"You can't do that!" Dirk shouted as he and Mad Dog stared at Cyrus stunned. "We have to get to football practice, Coach is gonna . . ."

"I already talked to your coach," Cyrus told them. "He said that you two can miss a few practices and could stand to learn some humility. Now march."

The two jocks grudgingly walked into the men's room, where their work waited, to the stifled snickers of the other four.

"As for you four," he went on, "the trash is starting to pile up in the kitchen. So finish up here and take it all out to the kitchen dumpster in the alley."

With that, the four "friends" went back to work, but not before Mel and Riff shared one last dirty glare at each other.

"I could've taken them," she said under her breath.

"Uh…nuh," Riff softly replied.

**(Insert scene change graphic)**

Meanwhile, not too far away from the bowling alley, Koogotho and his legion of shadow hunters were terrorizing the streets.

** "**Go my Shadow Hunters!" he commanded. "Ravage this place and make the way for our Lord and Master, Great Chief Necrolong!"

"That will not happen," said a voice behind him.

The Shadow Warrior turned to see the Red Ranger behind him.

"And just what are you supposed to be?" Koogotho asked, crossing his arms in annoyance.

The Red Ranger brought his right fist up to his heart and slowly swung it out as he spoke.

"I am the descendant of one of the Ancient Warriors who first sealed you away," he said, "and I will be the one to do it again. Brave as the Eagle, Tribal Force Red Ranger."

With a series of hand motions as he spoke, the Red Ranger ended his "speech" with his feet together and his arms spread high and out like wings.

"Is that a fact?" Koogotho asked. "One from the Ancient Warrior's blood line. How underwhelming. Pardon me while I yawn. You're not worth my time. Shadow Hunters, destroy him."

On cue, several of the Shadow Warrior's minions stopped what they were doing and charged at the ranger. The ranger took a fighting stance and engaged them. As one group approached him and began attacking him, he easily blocked them and countered with his own series of punches and kicks, knocking down each Shadow Hunter until they each had taken enough damage to lose their form and sink into the shadows. Once the first group was gone, another charged in, this one with archers a short distance away firing energy arrows. The ranger rolled out of the way of the arrows and as he came into a crouching position he reached around and pulled a small laser pistol from a holster on his belt. He took aim and fired, taking out two of the archers and grazing another as the tomahawk-wielding Shadow Hunters reached his position. The ranger blocked their attacks and blasted them with his pistol before returning fire at the archers, once again taking them out. The Red Ranger flipped over the remaining Shadow Hunters and pressed a button on his blaster that made it flip open so that the top of the blaster now covered the barrel, making the gun look more like a baton.

"Spirit Blaster!" the ranger said as he grabbed the new 'handle' and twirled it before holding it high above his head, showing that the grip and hand guard were now bladed. "Tomahawk mode!"

He then charged at the remaining Shadow Hunters and slashed them one by one with his new weapon, taking them down with ease and causing them to dissolve into the shadows like the rest of them. He then turned to Koogotho.

"Impressive," the Shadow Warrior quipped. "Maybe you are worth a moment of my time. Just let me slip into something more comfortable."

The enemy performed a few body movements as strands of dark energy flew out of the shadows on the street and nearby alleys and into the Shadow Warrior. Suddenly, in a burst of energy, Koogotho revealed his form and changed. What stood where it stood was now a monstrous combo of man and cougar. It stood almost 6 feet tall wearing only tan colored leather pants. Its body was covered in tan fur with sharp claws on its hands and feet. Its head was that of a cougar.

"So your true form has been revealed, Shadow Beast," the ranger commented. "Now to destroy you."

"Take your best shot," Koogotho taunted.

The two charged at each other and began to fight, but each attack the ranger made with his tomahawk was blocked with ease by the Shadow Beast. Yet, with one swipe of its claws, Koogotho knocked him to the ground like he was nothing.

_'OK,'_ the ranger said to himself as he stood back up, _'this will be harder than I thought.'_

**(commercial break)**

In an alley behind the bowling alley, Riff and Seth had just thrown the last two bags of garbage into a dumpster.

"Well, that does it," Seth told the group as Melody and Kiki joined the boys. "Let's let Cyrus know we're done."

"Then we won't hafta concern ourselves with each udda again," Riff added.

The girls nodded in agreement to this and the foursome started to go back inside until an explosion in the street caught their attention.

"What was that?" Seth wondered.

"I don't know," Mel said, "but I'm gonna find out."

With that, she ran down the alley towards the sound.

"Melody, no, come back!" Kiki yelled as she chased after her sister.

Seth and Riff looked at each other before following both of them. Once all four were together again they saw what had caused the explosion. A figure in what looked like red tights was fighting a strange-looking monster in the street.

"Is that a . . ." Seth started.

"It can't be," Riff interjected.

"I think it is," Kiki told them.

"It's a . . . Power Ranger," Melody finished.

The group watched as the Ranger seemed to fly around the monster; blocking, dodging, and countering its attacks with ease. They watched as with one punch, he sent it flying into a trash can a good three feet away. As the monster started to pick itself up, it noticed the four high schoolers just standing there, and instantly had an idea.

"Alright, Ranger," Koogotho said to his opponent. "You think you're tough? Let's see you fight me and protect them at the same time."

Looking to where the monster was indicating, the Red Ranger saw the kids.

_'Oh, no,'_ he thought. _'That's the last thing I need.'_

"Get out of here!" the Ranger told the foursome.

"Too late," Koogotho said. "Shadow Hunters, rise!"

On command, several Shadow Hunters rose out of nearby shadows in front of the four teenagers, and stared them down menacingly.

"I think now might be a good time to go," Seth said as he grabbed Riff's collar and started to pull him away before he could start something.

"Good idea," Kiki said, as she ushered his sister to follow the boys.

Unfortunately, they did not get very far before several more Shadow Hunters appeared in the alley, trapping the four teens in the proverbial rock and a hard place. The Red Ranger tried to rush to their aid; but the monster, now back on his feet, cut off his path.

"Where are you going, Ranger?" it asked. "Your fight is with me."

Having said that, the monster slashed the Ranger twice, hitting him with enough force to knock him off his feet and into the building behind him.

Meanwhile, the four teens looked for a way out of their current predicament.

"Anymore brilliant plans?" Mel asked as the Hunters closed in on them.

"I think dere's only one thing we can do," Riff told them, raising his fist into a fighting stance.

"I hate to say it, Seth," Kiki said to the cowboy hat wearing teen, "but Riff may be right."

"Now wait a minute," Seth said as he looked directly at one of the Shadow Hunters. "Can't we talk about this? I mean, are you guys extras in a movie or …"

Seth didn't get to finish his question as the Shadow Hunter lunged at them with its tomahawk on a downward swing. Riff, Mel, and Kiki moved out of the way while Seth leaned just enough to his left so that it missed his head and hit the wall with the goosebump-inducing sound of metal scraping stone. Seth looked from the weapon to the warrior, and back, and again as the look on his face changed from one of shock from being attacked, to one of determination as if answering a challenge.

"Guess not." he said as he pushed his attacker away from him.

Seth then took a few steps away from the wall and allowed himself to be surrounded by Shadow Hunters. He looked to see Kiki, Melody, and Riff were also surrounded by the strange beings.

"You really wanna mess with dis, you faceless freaks?!" Riff asked, ready to fight. "Then bring it on!"

As if a bell had rung at a boxing match, the Shadow Hunters attacked their surrounded targets, and the teens fought back with their own style. Riff countered each attack aggressively, as if he was in a street fight. Melody was also fighting aggressively, using what looked like a basic martial arts moves to add to her attacks. Her sister, Kiki was using more advanced martial arts moves; but she used them in the way they were intended, as a way of self-defense. Finally, Seth was fighting the most defensively, basically blocking attacks and pushing the attacker away, sometimes into other Shadow Hunters. Despite their best efforts, though, the Shadow Hunters were overwhelming the teens by their sheer numbers.

Seeing the bystanders in a losing fight, the Red Ranger became frustrated.

"I have to help them," he growled, scuffling with the monster.

"You're not going anywhere, Ranger," Koogotho told him, as he pushed the Ranger away and slashed at him again.

Meanwhile, as Melody fought, a Shadow Hunter snuck up behind her and wrapped its arms under hers and around her shoulders; holding her in place.

"Hey, hands off!" Melody shouted, trying to struggle free.

Hearing her sister's voice, Kiki looked in her direction to see her trying to break free of a Shadow Hunter's grip.

"Melody, no!"

Unfortunately, she was too busy with her own group of Shadow Hunters to try and help Mel.

Meanwhile, Melody struggled hard to break the Shadow Hunter's grip on her. She saw another Shadow Hunter move in front of her, its tomahawk at the ready.

"Can't we talk about this?" she asked the faceless creature.

Its only answer was to charge at her. As a reflex, Melody closed her eyes and held her hand out in front of her in a vain attempt to block the attack. She was so scared; she didn't notice the tingling in her hands. When she heard something that sounded like a scream in the voice, if you could call it that, of the creature; Melody opened her eyes and saw a surprising sight. The creature was on the ground being helped up by a couple of its "friends". Before she could think about what happened, two more of the creatures were attacking. Once again, Melody threw up her hands and watched as they started to glow a light blue color; and suddenly, the attackers ran right into a barrier of the same colored energy.

"What the . . . "was all she could mutter in her shock.

Meanwhile, the Red Ranger and the monster, though fighting each other, noticed the events that had happened.

"What!?" yelled Koogotho in surprise.

While the Ranger just stared in confusion.

"The Turtle Spirit?" he whispered.

Meanwhile, Kiki finally managed to knock away the Shadow Hunters she was fighting. She looked over to see her sister was still struggling with her group of these things.

"Hang on, sis!" she called. "I'm coming!"

She started to move towards her sister. What she didn't realize as she ran, a yellow aura started to cover her legs and feet. Then suddenly, her quick sprint turned into a speed of light run. She barely had time to register this, as just as suddenly as she took off, she ran into Melody, the Shadow Hunters holding her and a few that still surrounded her. The impact and pile-up was enough to cause the monster to fade back into darkness. Once again, the Red Ranger saw this.

"The Coyote too?" he whispered just before catching sight of Koogotho's oncoming attack and blocking it with his tomahawk.

"How did you do that?" Melody asked her sister, as she helped her back to feet.

"You got me." Kiki told her. "Probably the same way you managed to make that energy shield."

It was at that point Riff landing face first on the ground in front of the sisters after a Shadow Hunter had thrown him.

"You ladies wanna try n focus here?" He asked.

He then started to take off towards another group of Shadow Hunters, but he ended up tripping himself as his right toe caught his left heel. While he was falling, he tried to get his flailing arms in front of him to try and catch him. What he didn't notice was a faint violet aura surrounded his right hand. He landed heavily on the ground with his right hand hitting last. From it, though, the aura left his hand and traveled across the ground like a lit fuse, drawing closer to the group of Shadow Hunters he was looking at before. The group watched curiously as the strange aura crept closer. Soon as it was at their feet, the aura exploded into a snake-like form that attacked the Shadow Hunter group and sent them flying. Riff, having looked up just in time to see it, just stared in shock as Melody and Kiki came to his side.

"Woah, did I do that?" he asked.

"Guess so," Melody told him as she and her sister struggled to help him back to his feet, just in time to fight off some new Shadow Hunters that had appeared.

Meanwhile, the Red Ranger, who had managed to knock the monster away again, had seen what had happened.

"And The Snake?" He said, a little louder this time. "What's going on here?"

It was then the Cougar-themed monster attacked him again, and he blocked it with his tomahawk.

Meanwhile, the last one with a large group of Shadow Hunters to deal with was Seth. Though he was dodging, blocking and pushing back every Shadow Hunter that tried to hit him, it was becoming clear to him and he was fighting a losing battle. Then, as he was leaning to dodge an attack from one side, a Shadow Hunter from behind him an also swung his weapon, but only managed to knock Seth's hat off his head and into the air. Seth, feeling his head was now bare looked up to see his hat come down and land on the head of a Shadow Hunter right in front of him. The young cowboy then started to get mad, and clenched his right hand tightly into fist as it was covered in a faint blackish aura. He then threw his first punch of the battle, hitting the Hunter that was wearing his hat and sending it and at least two other Hunters behind it slamming into the brick wall behind them with enough force to cause it to crack. The shockwave produced from that one hit cause all the Hunters that surrounded Seth to be knocked off their feet with the wind knocked out of them. Seth then briskly walked to where the Hunter he had hit, who had no dissolved into shadows, once was and picked up his hat.

"No one touches my hat," he said coldly as he dusted it off and put it back on his head.

Koogotho knocked the Red Ranger away this time, and turned to see his four "hostages" were now unguarded.

"Impossible!" he declared. "No normal human could have defeated that many Shadow Hunters!"

"Guess we're not as helpless as you thought we were monster," Mel taunted, punctuating her point by sticking out her tongue at the Shadow Beast.

Koogotho growled loudly.

"Fine then, I'll just destroy you myself."

"Keep your eyes on your true opponent, monster."

Koogotho turned around, and looked up just in time to see the Red Ranger, now a good several feet in the air, draw back the string of his now glowing bow.

"Spirit Strike!" he declared. "Feather Storm!"

He released the string, and from the bow flew hundreds of energy arrows shaped like feathers. The rained out on the Shadow Beast, striking him about as many times as there were arrows. An explosion erupted on the spot where Koogotho was, and he was knocked away, now forcefully reverted into his Shadow Warrior form.

"You haven't won yet, Red Ranger," he declared as he staggered back to his feet. "I'll be back, and I'll be even more powerful." And with that, the monster vanished into the darkness.

The Red Ranger landed with his feet on the ground as the four teen approached him.

"Are you alright?" he asked them.

"Nuttin' we couldn't handle," Riff told him cockily.

"Speak for yourself," Kiki said, elbowing him.

"Question is, are you ok?" Seth asked the Ranger.

"Don't concern yourselves with me," the Ranger told them. "I'm fi…"

At that moment, the Red Ranger collapsed; fainting right in front of the high schoolers. Moving quickly, Kiki and Seth caught him, and eased him to the ground.

"Guess that battle took more out of him then he let on," Melody said.

Suddenly, the Ranger began to glow; and in seconds where the Red Ranger once laid was a dark-skinned boy that looked about Melody's age, with long, black hair held by a red beaded headband with two feathers in it. He wore a white, short-sleeved shirt, blue jeans, red canvas shoes, and a red, sleeveless vest with fringe typical of a Native American outfit on it.

"He's just a kid!" Seth said in shock.

"Should we take him to a hospital?" Kiki asked.

"Nuts to that, sis," Melody said. "Who'd believe us? I think we should take him home. He's folks'll probably go crazy if we don't."

"The hospital would call his parent, Mel," Kiki told her. "It's the right thing to do."

Before anyone could say anything else, Riff bent down and started to frisk the kid.

"What're you doing?" Kiki asked him.

"Whazzit look like?" Riff asked her. "I's looking for his wallet. Should have his home address in it."

"But we need…"

"Kiki," Seth said, stopping her. "I hate to say it, but Mel and Riff are right. We don't need a whole lot of questions we can't answer. Who ever his parents are might know what to do better than anyone."

"But…" Kiki started again, but stopped with a sigh, giving up.

"Got it," Riff said, fishing a buckskin wallet out of the kid's back pocket.

He opened it and looked through it before finding what looked like a student ID to Raygos Springs.

"How bout dat?" Riff said. "Kid goes to RSH." He then read the name. "Eli EagleCLAW!?"

**(commercial break)**

"Eagleclaw?!"

"Mr. Eagleclaw has a son?" Mel said shocked.

"More importantly, his son's a Power Ranger?" Kiki said, equally shocked.

"Let's worry about it later," Seth said, picking up the boy. "Right now, let's get him back home. We'll take my truck. Kiki, you ride in the bed with him. Mel and Riff, you ride in the cab with me, with that the headed to the front of the bowling alley. They headed towards a beat-up white pick-up sitting in a spot near the entrance. While Seth and Kiki eased the boy into the bed of the pick-up, Melody started to get in the passenger side while Riff mounted a motorcycle in front of the truck and started to put on a helmet.

"You're not coming, Riff?" Melody asked, surprised.

"Course I am," Riff told her. "I wanna see how dis ends. I's just ratha take my bike rather den be crammed in that pick-up."

"Suit yourself," Seth said as he got in the driver's side of his pick-up. "Just follow close. Mel, call Mr. Eagleclaw's number on the syllabus and see if he'll give you his address."

With that, the group drove off with Seth in front and Riff riding right behind him. Kiki knelt down in the bed, keeping an eye on the kid in case he came to.

**(Insert scene change graphic)**

Back in the mountain lair, Leonidus was enraged that his mighty warrior had returned without success in his mission. Primichimp, Darkro, and Octarina were equally as upset.

"You have failed me, Koogotho!" Leonidus roared, scaring the Shadow Warrior and causing him to fall back on his butt. "You had great power that none in this time could match! How is that you could not conquer and destroy this city?!"

"It isn't entirely my fault, Chief Leonidus," Koogotho stammered, "I merely underestimated the Ranger and his allies. A mistake I will not make twice."

Leonidus's anger changed to confusion.

"Ranger?" he asked.

"The Red Power Ranger, my chief, The one who fought me. He claimed to be a descendant of a Raygos Warrior."

Primichimp, Darkro, and Octarina shared a worried look and together uttered an "uh-oh." This caught Leonidus's attention.

"It seems you third have some knowledge on this," he said, turning to his allies. "Tell me, what is a Power Ranger?"

**(End credits)**

_**And there is your winner Ranger fans. What did you think? Please leave me a review. Also FYI, I'm not sure if I'll update this fic at the same time every time as my other Ranger fic, the Megaforce rewrite, but I'll at least try to be regular with updates. We'll just have to see if I succeed or fail at that. I hope you all don't mind waiting. In any case, until next time.**_


End file.
